Early-Life Origins of Type 2 Diabetes: Fetal Programming of the Beta-Cell Mass

Figure 3

Mechanisms for the installation and intergenerational transmission of programmed beta-cell mass (BCM) disruption in the GK/Par rat model of type 2 diabetes. Maternal IGT/diabetes during gestation induces BCM programming in the first (F1) and the subsequent rat generations. Metabolic modifications in the pups during the in utero and suckling periods are followed by the onset of pathological conditions in adulthood (glucose intolerance and type 2 diabetes) and the transmission of programmed endocrine/metabolic capacities to the next generation. W: Wistar strain.